Bond Between Rivals
by Perpetual Paradox
Summary: AU. In a timeline where Rusty never joined ThunderClan as Firepaw, Tigerstar rose to power and, together with Brokenstar, ruled over the forest territory with strength and fear. After a fire purges the corruption from the forest and leaves the clans weak, they must unite and work together to survive. But can the feuding clans move on and set aside their differences?
1. Prologue

**PROLOGUE**

 _"Fire will save the clan."_

The prophecy first uttered by Spottedleaf brought hope to ThunderClan in a time of uncertainty. Deputy after deputy fell, leaving the cats of ThunderClan shaken and lost. Bluestar led the clan valiantly through their hardships, and under her strong leadership as well as the watchful eye of her deputy, Tigerclaw, the clan prevailed.

Until the beloved Bluestar was found murdered in her den.

Tigerclaw stepped up to lead ThunderClan without hesitation. In the clan's weakened state, he ruled the territory with strength and fear. Cats loyal to him kept ThunderClan in line with violent threats and strict rules.

Before long, Tigerstar joined forces with Brokenstar of ShadowClan. Together, the two terrible leaders waged war on WindClan and RiverClan, bringing them to ruins with their combined strength and coordinated attacks.

Just when everything was on the brink of collapse, a devastating fire swept through the forest and brought an end to the tyrannical leaders by stripping away their remaining lives.

Fire would save the clans, but not in the way anyone would expect.

ThunderClan and ShadowClan were left in ruins from the fire, while WindClan and RiverClan had been almost completely destroyed by Tigerstar and Brokenstar. Only a few cats from each clan remained.

With all hope lost, the clan cats cower away in their dens, having barely enough cats to support themselves. The four clan leaders are dead, food is dwindling, and leafbare is approaching.

But StarClan has sent a message of hope.


	2. Chapter 1

**CHAPTER 1**

Sootpaw bounded through the green, grassy hollow which seemed far too peaceful to exist in such a frightening time. Though the dawn light was just starting to illuminate the ground, his black pelt felt warm.

The sight of a black-and-white tom sitting on the horizon made Sootpaw stumble and slide to a halt. He'd thought he was alone here. As the cat's scent reached his nose, Sootpaw's mouth gaped open in shock.

"Tallstar…?" he called quietly, as if his voice would scare his former leader away. He took a few cautious steps forward.

Tallstar turned to him, his amber eyes showing poorly masked pain and grief. "Sootpaw," he greeted. "It is good to see you."

"Tallstar!" Sootpaw joyfully exclaimed. He ran to his leader, purring as he stopped just before the tom. "Where are we?"

"We are in the hunting grounds of StarClan," he explained.

"StarClan? So, this is… just a dream…" Sootpaw muttered.

Tallstar nodded. "But I have something important to tell you, Sootpaw."

Sootpaw's ears perked at his former leader's words.

"You must take WindClan to Fourtrees," Tallstar explained. "I won't tell you what you'll find there, but you must trust me. The clans will survive, I promise you that."

"But… we have no leader, no deputy. Not even a medicine cat!" Sootpaw argued. "How are we supposed to survive? A single badger could end WindClan now…"

"Trust me, Sootpaw," Tallstar urged him.

"Will they listen to me?"

"You are my messenger," Tallstar replied. "They must listen to you, or it will be the end of WindClan."

As Tallstar began to fade, Sootpaw became frantic. He wasn't ready for his beloved leader to go yet. "Wait! Stay with me, please! We need you!"

But Tallstar didn't answer, and before Sootpaw knew it, he awoke in his nest.

"What are you squirming around for?" a she-cat's voice, laced with groggy annoyance, called to him. Sootpaw glanced over to see his fellow apprentice and den-mate, the tortoiseshell she-cat Mottlepaw.

Sootpaw didn't even bother to answer. He scrambled out of his nest and bounded into camp, leaving Mottlepaw calling confusedly after him.

The dark-pelted warrior, Darkstream, sat crouched over their pitiful fresh-kill pile. The rest of the camp was barren, so the warrior quickly caught sight of Sootpaw and offered him a nod in greeting.

"Darkstream, I… I had a dream," he began. "Where's Mossystone and Weaselfang?"

"Out hunting," Darkstream answered. "Tell me about you dream."

"I saw… Tallstar," Sootpaw stuttered. He noticed Darkstream's eyes lighting up at the mention of their deceased leader. "He told me WindClan has to go to Fourtrees, or else we won't survive."

"That doesn't seem to leave us much of a choice," Darkstream commented. "We'll tell what's left of WindClan when they return."

Sootpaw stared at the lone, skinny rabbit laying in the fresh-kill pile, but found he was far too anxious to eat. Instead, he turned to gaze at the leader's empty nest.

"What's going on? You were acting like there was thorns in your nest," the voice of Mottlepaw startled him out of his thoughts. The apprentice sat down at the fresh-kill pile and looked at him expectantly, but Sootpaw never felt like talking to her.

"Sootpaw received a message from Tallstar," Darkstream explained.

Mottlepaw looked confused at first, but then her expression changed to one of envy. "Why him? He's not even a warrior!"

"Neither are you," Sootpaw growled.

"Yeah, but at least I'm not the size of a kit."

Sootpaw spun around to face her, arching his back like he was ready to pounce.

"Enough!" Darkstream commanded them. "Tallstar's reasons for choosing Sootpaw are his own. Don't question the decisions of StarClan."

Mottlepaw mumbled something in protest, but Darkstream didn't acknowledge her any further.

The arrival of two cats, heads and tails drooping, distracted Sootpaw from the previous argument. The gray-pelted she-cat Mossystone was at the front, with the brown tabby tom Weaselfang padded at her flank.

"Sorry to come back empty-pawed," Mossystone apologized. "But… we've discovered a fresh fox scent."

Mottlepaw gasped. "We can't scare off a fox! It could just walk right in here and eat us!"

Darkstream shot the apprentice a glare to silence her. "We should address Sootpaw's dream first." The dark-pelted warrior gave him a look which silently urged him to speak.

"His dream?" Mossystone questioned, tilting her head to the side.

"I had a dream, I was in the hunting grounds of StarClan and saw Tallstar," Sootpaw explained in greater detail. "He told me we need to go to Fourtrees, that we'd find something there, but he didn't say what. He promised me we'd survive."

"I see," Weaselfang grunted.

"That's great news!" Mossystone exclaimed. Somehow, the awful events occurring in the past moon had hardly dampened her spirit.

"Should we send a small party ahead to check things out?" Weaselfang suggested.

"We don't have enough cats left for that," Darkstream argued.

"Then we all go," Mossystone decided. "Now."

Sootpaw wasn't yet accustomed to decisions being made by random cats. It seemed much easier to have a leader and deputy giving out orders.

With a sweep of his tail, Darkstream signaled for the WindClan cats to follow. Sootpaw followed after them, but found he had to walk quickly to match their pace. He caught sight of Mottlepaw walking alongside her mentor, Mossystone, and felt envy rise up inside him over her still having a mentor.

As the great oaks of Fourtrees came into view, Sootpaw took a deep breath.

 _I trust you, Tallstar._


	3. Chapter 2

**CHAPTER 2**

The sight of Fourtrees left Sootpaw in awe. He'd never actually seen the great oaks before, since it had been only two moons since his apprenticeship, and tensions had been too high for him to be permitted to join. In fact, he'd hardly been out of the WindClan camp his whole life.

Darkstream stood at the head of the group, surveying the clearing ahead of them. "It looks safe, no unusual scents," he reported. "Let's go."

As the WindClan cats descended into Fourtrees, Sootpaw paused to take in his surroundings. His attention was drawn to the large rock at its center.

"That's the Great Rock," Mossystone explained. She must have noticed him staring at it. "It's where the leaders sit during gatherings."

"At least, where they used to sit…" Weaselfang muttered.

"WindClan?" an unfamiliar voice called. Sootpaw felt the fur rise along his spine as his clanmates turned to face the voice. Darkstream stepped in front of him, but he still caught sight of the white she-cat with calico patches standing at the edge of the clearing.

"Emberlight," Darkstream greeted. His voice was friendly, but Sootpaw could tell by his stance that he was still on edge. "What are you doing here?"

"The same as you, perhaps?" she replied. "Did you receive a message from StarClan?"

"We did," Darkstream confirmed.

"Is this all that's left of your clan?" Emberlight prodded.

Darkstream seemed to hesitate, and Sootpaw didn't blame him for being reluctant to answer.

"We are both victims of ThunderClan and ShadowClan, Darkstream," Emberlight urged him. "Perhaps we should trust one another?" Before Darkstream could respond again, Emberlight approached with three more cats behind her, one of them being the size of an apprentice. "This is all that's left of RiverClan," she admitted.

"I'm sorry for your loss," Darkstream replied. "This is all of WindClan, as well."

A new scent wafted through the clearing, and both clans were suddenly alert. New faces appeared at the opposite end of Fourtrees, eliciting a warning growl form the warriors around Sootpaw.

"What's ThunderClan doing here?" Weaselfang demanded.

"StarClan has asked us to come here," a brown tabby she-cat answered.

"Squirrelfur? Where is your murderous leader?" Emberlight spat.

"Tigerstar is dead," Squirrelfur reported. "He perished in the fire, as did Brokenstar."

"You expect us to believe that?" Darkstream growled.

Sootpaw had seen the fire that had swept through ThunderClan's territory, it had raged for days until the twolegs and their big red monsters put an end to it. At least, that was what Mossystone had told him.

"Search the forest, if you don't believe us," Squirrelfur invited them. "All of ThunderClan is here – you won't find anyone else."

"Trying to lead us into an ambush," a pale RiverClan she-cat growled.

Sootpaw scoured the ledge they stood on and only saw five cats. That was _all_ of ThunderClan? _'How did they lose so many?'_ he wondered.

"Where's ShadowClan?" Emberlight demanded. "We can only assume they received the same message."

"We have not had any contact with them since the fire," Squirrelfur answered. "They might have returned to their own territory."

"Maybe they left the forest," Weaselfang muttered. "If only we could be so lucky…"

Before any cat could utter another word, the cats of ShadowClan began to appear at the edge of the clearing one by one. Once they had all arrived, Sootpaw counted six cats. The greatest number of all the clans, but still a pitiful amount.

A gray-pelted tom stepped forward and called out, "Our medicine cat has received a message from StarClan."

"All clans have received the message," Squirrelfur added. "StarClan wanted us to gather here, at Fourtrees."

"But why?" Mossystone asked. "It's not time for a gathering, and the clans are weak."

"Perhaps the cats who have spoken with StarClan should speak about the message in greater detail," Darkstream suggested, tilting his head toward Sootpaw.

"Yes, let's have our messengers assemble in front of the Great Rock," Squirrelfur agreed.

Mossystone encouraged Sootpaw to step forward with a gentle nudge. Feeling the eyes of every clan upon him, the dark-pelted apprentice padded forward until he stood at the base of the Great Rock with three other cats. The most notable was Emberlight, the RiverClan deputy.

The clearing was silent until one of the four, a white tom with an unusual orange tabby pointed pelt, began to speak. "Bluestar came to me in a dream. She said ThunderClan would survive only if we came to Fourtrees."

"Crookedstar delivered me the same message for RiverClan," Emberlight added.

Sootpaw nodded in acknowledgement. "I saw Tallstar. He told me to trust him, and that WindClan must go to Fourtrees."

Silence once again fell over the clearing as the clans waited for the last messenger to speak.

"Speak, Sandpaw," the gray-pelted ShadowClan tom growled.

Sootpaw's eyes darted to the last member of their group. A fluffy pale she-cat with brown point took a deep breath and spoke in a quiet voice, "Raggedstar told me the same."

"Then it seems the purpose of the message is clear," Squirrelfur announced as she leaped gracefully to the top of the Great Rock. "StarClan has commanded us to form one clan in order to survive."

"What?!" Weaselfang growled.

The fur along Darkstream's spine bristled. "Don't defile the Great Rock with your filthy paws," he warned.

With a disgusted scoff, Squirrelfur flicked her tail as she clambered back down. Clearly, she wasn't looking to start a fight with the clans in this state.

"I agree with Squirrelfur," a gray tabby ShadowClan she-cat called out. "StarClan wouldn't have called us here to fight. Fourtrees is a sacred place. The only way for us to survive is to work together."

"I'd sooner chew off my own tail than work with murderers," a RiverClan tom spat.

"And doom your own clan to destruction?" a ThunderClan she-cat retorted.

Sootpaw found his eyes drawn to Emberlight and Darkstream, who both seemed lost in thought. Surely, banding the clans together was unheard of, perhaps even against the Warrior Code. But if StarClan had commanded it…

"RiverClan will join forces," Emberlight decided. Her announcement was met with murmurs, as well as a few disgruntled noises from her clan.

Finally, all eyes seemed to rest on Darkstream. He wasn't WindClan's deputy, but since WindClan's massacre he had taken on a leadership role. The clans were quite used to following orders, so it was natural to seek out someone to give them. The noise died down as everyone awaited the tom's answer.

"WindClan will join as well."


	4. Chapter 3

**CHAPTER 3**

The clearing erupted into chaos, with every cat yowling to have their voice heard. A few cats tried to silence the frantic crowd, but after a while the noise died down to murmurs. Sootpaw watched as the clans huddled in groups to discuss the message from StarClan.

"Where will we make camp?" a ThunderClan she-cat asked. "Our camp is in ruins."

"The RiverClan camp can do," Emberlight offered.

"I'm not swimming across that river!" a ShadowClan tom scoffed.

"Silence!" Squirrelfur called above the crowd. "We will make camp here at Fourtrees. That way no clan has any sort of advantage."

Sootpaw looked upward once again, taking in the sight of the towering oaks. In the WindClan camp, there weren't any trees obstructing the view of the sky. His mentor, Foxfrost, had told him this made them closer to StarClan. He didn't understand how the other clans could sleep covered by branches and leaves.

"I second making camp at Fourtrees," Darkstream added with a nod.

Murmurs of agreement spread across the clearing. It seemed the thick air of tension had begun to dissipate, now that the clans had a solution to their troubles.

"We should start making nests," Emberlight announced. "Each clan can elect a temporary leader and get to work."

As the clans began planning amongst themselves, Sootpaw turned to face the other members of WindClan. Mottlepaw sat next to her mentor, Mossystone, while Weaselfang didn't seem pleased about the recent events.

"We'll gather bedding in two groups," Darkstream ordered. "Sootpaw and Mottlepaw with Mossystone, and Weaselfang with me."

Sootpaw nodded as Mossystone stood to her paws. "Let's go, you two. I know a good spot to gather some moss and feathers."

Sootpaw cast another glance back at the assembly of cats at Fourtrees before heading back into WindClan territory. While he wasn't pleased about getting stuck in a group with Mottlepaw, he was interested in hearing what Mossystone had to say about everything that had transpired at Fourtrees.

"Are we really going to form one clan?" Mottlepaw asked.

"I'm not sure," Mossystone admitted. "One clan implies we'd have one leader and one deputy, and I don't think any clan is willing to give up power and start following a cat from another clan."

"But we can't have four leaders and four deputies, we'd never get anything done," Sootpaw commented. "Orders would come from all over the place."

"That's true," Mossystone agreed. "Perhaps we'll receive more direction from StarClan."

"Do you think allying with the other clans is really the right thing to do?" Sootpaw prodded.

"I don't know yet," Mossystone answered. "But it seems to be what StarClan wants us to do, and it's safer than staying separate."

They finally arrived at an old fallen log, which Mossystone instructed them to check for moss. As Sootpaw clawed the moss from the underside of the log, Mossystone padded off in search of feathers.

"How come Tallstar chose you to send his message?" Mottlepaw asked. She'd stopped collecting moss to stare at the small black apprentice.

"You heard Darkstream, Tallstar has his own reasons," Sootpaw answered vaguely.

"Yeah but, all the other cats who got it were way older. Emberlight's even a deputy!" she complained. "You're barely more than a kit."

"I've been an apprentice for two moons," Sootpaw growled, patience for his fellow apprentice wearing thin.

"Yeah, but you don't look it," Mottlepaw sneered. "I heard Weaselfang say you should just be a medicine cat. You'll probably never be a warrior."

A wave of rage washed over Sootpaw, and he threw himself at Mottlepaw. She hardly had time to react as he bit into her scruff, but the larger apprentice used her own weight to throw him over onto the ground. She pinned him effortlessly.

"Nice try," Mottlepaw snickered.

Sootpaw kicked Mottlepaw's stomach with his back legs, sending the tortoiseshell she-cat stumbling back. Before she could recover, Sootpaw scrambled to his paws and took off running. Mottlepaw didn't even bother to chase after him.

Sootpaw felt sorrow well up in his chest as he bounded across the flat moor of WindClan territory. It wasn't long before he heard a voice call, "Sootpaw!"

The sound of frantic pawsteps overlapped his own, and soon the apprentice slid to a halt. Suddenly, Mossystone appeared in front of him.

"Sootpaw, where are you going?" she questioned, suddenly noticing his quick, erratic breathing. "What's wrong?"

"I…" he stammered. "Mottlepaw, we…"

"Oh…" she hummed quietly. "Was Mottlepaw making fun of you again?"

Sootpaw sat and curled his tail around his paws. "Do you think I'll ever be a warrior?"

"Of course," Mossystone answered without hesitation. "It's not the size of the cat, Sootpaw. It's what's inside that counts."

"But-," he began, but Mossystone cut him off once again.

"Listen, Sootpaw," she sighed. "I was there for your mother's kitting. You were so small… no one expected you to survive. And yet…" Mossystone trailed off, taking a moment to move closer to Sootpaw and run her tongue over his ears. "When whitecough struck, it hit all four of you kits, as well as your mother. We knew greencough wasn't far behind. But somehow you, the tiny little kit too small to even cry, were the only one not to succumb to greencough."

"I've heard this story a dozen times," Sootpaw replied, though he never minded hearing about his late mother and siblings. "What does that have to do with anything?"

"My point is," Mossystone continued. "You're a fighter. You don't give up, and that's a mark of some of the greatest warriors."

"Thanks, Mossystone," Sootpaw smiled softly. He did feel a bit better, though he wasn't ready to return and face Mottlepaw.

"Let's take the bedding back to Fourtrees," Mossystone instructed. "Then you can take a break while I talk with Mottlepaw about her behavior."

With a nod, Sootpaw bounded after Mossystone as the warrior returned to gather her pile of feathers and moss. As they headed back in the direction of Mottlepaw, Sootpaw ruminated on how nice it must have been to have Mossystone as a mentor. She was gentle and kind, giving off a motherly vibe. Perhaps that was why the rest of the clan seemed to listen to her.

Ever since Sootpaw's mentor, Foxfrost, had perished in the fight with ThunderClan and ShadowClan, Sootpaw had been left without a mentor. In a way, he was glad; he still hadn't completely gotten over the death of Foxfrost.

Weaselfang was too harsh at times, at least in Sootpaw's eyes, and he didn't appear to bear much sympathy for the small apprentice. Darkstream simply seemed too busy to take on an apprentice.

Could he ever become a warrior without a proper mentor?


End file.
